SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING BALE COLLECTION OPERATIONS
A method for performing a bale collection operation may generally include accessing data associated with a plurality of baling paths traversed across a field during the performance of a baling operation, with each baling path being associated with at least one bale of a plurality of bales to be collected within the field. The method may also include determining a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the bales and generating a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed when collecting the bales and delivering the bales to the staging area. In addition, the method may include guiding a work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the bales within the field and deliver the bales to the staging area.
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The present subject matter relates generally to the collection of bales from a field following the performance of a baling operation and, more particularly, to systems and methods for performing a bale collection operation in a more effective and/or efficient manner.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONIn the field of agricultural operations, it is known to tow a baler behind a work vehicle (e.g., a tractor) when performing a baling operation. For example, following a prior harvesting operation, cutting operation, or windrowing operation, crop material is often deposited within a field in swaths or windrows. Thereafter, the baler may be towed across the field to collect the crop material and produce bales. For instance, the baler may collect the crop material via an intake or collection device located at the front of the baler and deliver such crop material to a baling chamber of the baler, within which the crop material is compacted into a bale of a predetermined shape (e.g., a round bale or a square/rectangular bale). The resulting bale is then ejected from the rear of the baler and deposited within the field.
Following the performance of a baling operation, the bales deposited within the field are collected. Typically, an operator manually drives a work vehicle to collect the various bales individually and transport each bale to a desired location. Unfortunately, given the baling process, bales are often scattered across the field randomly. As a result, the operator must rely on a visual assessment of the field to determine the order in which the bales should be collected and the path(s) that should be taken across the field when collecting each bale. Unfortunately, operators are often incapable of selecting the most efficient order and/or optimal paths for collecting the various bales scattered throughout the field, thereby resulting in increased collection times, increased fuel consumption, and/or greater operator fatigue. In addition, the performance of a bale collection operation often results in a significant amount of field compaction, particularly when the operator is simply relying on memory to determine which paths have already been taken across the field to collect bales.
Accordingly, systems and methods for collecting bales from a field that improve the efficiency of performing the associated bale collection operation and/or that reduce negative impacts to the field during the performance of the operation (e.g., compaction and/or yield losses) would be welcomed in the technology.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONAspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, or may be obvious from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.
In one aspect, the present subject matter is directed to a method for performing a bale collection operation. The method may generally include accessing, with a computing device, data associated with a plurality of baling paths traversed across a field during the performance of a baling operation, with each baling path being associated with at least one bale of a plurality of bales to be collected within the field. The method may also include determining, with the computing device, a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the bales and generating, with the computing device, a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed when collecting the bales and delivering the bales to the staging area. The guidance lines may include at least one bale collection guidance line defined relative to at least one of the baling paths and at least one staging guidance line extending between the bale collection guidance line(s) and the staging area. In addition, the method may include guiding, with the computing device, a work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the bales within the field and deliver the bales to the staging area.
In another aspect, the present subject matter is directed to a system for performing a bale collection operation. The system may generally include a work vehicle configured to collect a plurality of bales located within a field and a controller provided in operative association with the work vehicle. The controller may include a processor and associated memory. The memory may store instructions that, when implemented by the processor, configure the controller to access data associated with a plurality of baling paths traversed across the field during the performance of a baling operation, with each baling path being associated with at least one bale of the plurality of bales. The controller may also be configured to determine a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the bales and generate a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed by the work vehicle when collecting the bales and delivering the to the staging area. The guidance lines may include at least one bale collection guidance line defined relative to at least one of the baling paths and at least one staging guidance line extending between the bale collection guidance line(s) and the staging area. In addition, the controller may also be configured to guide the work vehicle along the guidance lines to collect the bales within the field and deliver the bales to the staging area.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures, in which:
Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
In general, the present subject matter is directed to systems and methods for performing bale collection operations (i.e., when collecting bales deposited within a field following a prior baling operation). In several embodiments, a controller of the system may be configured to generate a plan for optimizing the efficiency of the bale collection operation while taking into account any negative impacts to the field (e.g., compaction and/or yield losses). For example, the controller may be configured to generate guidance lines for collecting the various bales deposited within the field and for transporting such bales to a selected location defined relative to the field (e.g., a staging area) based, at least in part, on data associated with the previously performed baling operation (e.g., position data associated with the specific locations of the bales within the field and/or the specific locations of the baling paths traversed when performing the prior baling operation). The controller may then utilize the guidance lines for guiding a work vehicle across the field as each bale is collected and subsequently delivered to the selected staging area. For example, in one embodiment, the controller may be configured to automatically control the operation of the work vehicle such that the vehicle is moved across the field along the determined guidance lines without any operator input (e.g., for autonomous vehicle operation and/or when otherwise operating in an autonomous mode).
Referring now to the drawings,
As shown in
As schematically shown in
As shown in
It should be appreciated that the configuration of the work vehicle 10 described above and shown in
Additionally, it should be appreciated that the configuration of the baler 12 described above and shown in
Referring now to
As shown, the work vehicle 10 may be configured to tow the baler 12 across the field 100 along a plurality of baling paths (indicated by dashed lines 102 in
As the tractor 10 tows the baler 12 across the field 100 along each baling path 102, the collected crop material 104 is baled within the baler 12 and subsequently ejected therefrom back into the field as a bale 106. As such, one or more bales 106 may be deposited along each baling path 102 as the tractor/baler 10, 12 make a given baling pass across the field 100. In this regard, it should be appreciated that the specific number of bales 106 deposited along each baling path 102 may generally vary based on, for example, the length of the baling path 102 across the field 100, the amount of crop material 104 to be collected along the baling path 102, and/or the desired size of each bale 106. Thus, although
Additionally, in several embodiments, various types of data may be collected as the baling operation is being performed within the field 100. For example, in one embodiment, the work vehicle 10 and/or the baler 12 may be provided with a positioning device (e.g., a GPS device) that tracks the location of the tractor/baler 10, 12 as it is moved across the field 100. In such an embodiment, position data may be collected during the baling operation (e.g., by being recorded or stored within the memory of an on-board computer of the vehicle 10 and/or the baler 12) that is associated with the location/coordinates of each baling path 102 across the field 100 as well as the heading (e.g., as indicated by arrow 110 in
In addition to collecting data associated with the position/coordinates of the baling paths 102 and the associated vehicle heading 110 along each baling path 102, data may also be collected/recorded that is associated with the specific position/coordinates of each bale 106 within the field 100. For instance, in one embodiment, for each bale 106 deposited within the field 100, a set of GPS coordinates may be recorded that corresponds to the exact location of such deposited bale 106 within the field 100. As a result, upon completion of the baling operation, a database of bale position data may be available that specifies the various positions of the bales 106 within the field 100. As will be described below, such bale position data may, for example, be utilized (e.g., alone or in combination with other position data) in planning and/or performing a subsequent bale collection operation to allow the various bales 106 to be collected and aggregated at a selected staging area.
Referring now to
In several embodiments, the system 200 may include a work vehicle 202 configured to collect bales previously deposited within a field. In one embodiment, the work vehicle 202 may correspond to the vehicle 10 described above with reference to
As shown in
Additionally, the work vehicle 202 may also include a positioning device 210 configured to monitor or track the position of the vehicle 202 as it is traversed across a field. For example, in one embodiment, the positioning device 210 may be configured to determine the exact location of the work vehicle 202 using a satellite navigation position system (e.g. a GPS system, a Galileo positioning system, the Global Navigation satellite system (GLONASS), the BeiDou Satellite Navigation and Positioning system, and/or the like).
As shown in
In general, the controller 212 may correspond to any suitable processor-based device(s), such as a computing device or any combination of computing devices. Thus, as shown in
In several embodiments, the data 220 may be stored in one or more databases. For example, the memory 218 may include a bale collection database 224 for storing data associated with the bales to be collected from the field during the performance of the bale collection operation. Such data may, for instance, include any data collected during the performance of the prior baling operation, such as the position data associated with the location of the baling paths relative to the field, the heading data associated with the heading of the vehicle/baler along each baling path, and/or the position data associated with the specific location of each bale within the field. In addition, various other types of data may be stored within the bale collection database 224. For example, in one embodiment, data may be stored within the bale collection database 224 that is associated with one or more operator inputs, one or more user-defined system preferences, and/or other system inputs relevant to one or more aspects of the present subject matter, such as data associated with the specific type of bales being collected (e.g., round bales vs. square/rectangular bales), data associated with the specific size of bales being collected (e.g., 4×5, 5×5, or 6×5), data associated with a desired or selected location for the staging area at which the bales will be aggregated, data associated with a desired spacing or arrangement of the collected bales within the staging area, and/or any other relevant data.
Additionally, as shown in
Referring still to
In another embodiment, the staging area module 228 may be configured to determine the location of the staging area based on inputs received from an operator. For instance, the operator may be allowed to provide an input selecting the desired location of the staging area relative to the field. As an example, in one embodiment, a map of the field may be displayed to the operator via the display device 214 located within the operator's cab. In such an embodiment, the operator may provide an input(s) selecting a location on the map for the staging area.
It should be appreciated that the staging area at which the bales are to be aggregated may be located within the field, itself, or at a location outside the perimeter of the field. For instance, in certain embodiments, it may be desirable for the staging area to be located adjacent to a related bale storage facility (e.g., a barn or shed) positioned outside the field or at any other suitable non-field location selected to facilitate transport of the bales to another location.
In addition to determining the location of the staging area, the staging area module 228 of the controller 212 may also be configured to generate a staging grid within the staging area that defines the specific location at which each bale is to be placed within the staging area. For example, in one embodiment, the staging grid may correspond to an array of bale spaces or slots spaced apart across the staging area, with each bale slot specifying the location at which a given bale(s) should be placed within the staging area. In such an embodiment, the specific number of bale slots included within the staging grid, along with the size of each bale slot, may generally vary depending the type and/or size of the bales to be collected and/or any operator-selected preferences. For instance, when collecting round bales, the number of bale slots may be selected assuming a single bale will be placed within each bale slot, thereby creating a two-dimensional array of bales across the staging area (e.g., when the bales are not being stacked). However, when collecting square/rectangular bales, the number of bale slots may be selected, for example, to allow for two or more bales to be placed within each bale slot, thereby creating a three-dimensional array of bales across the staging area (e.g., when the bales are being stacked). Additionally, the size of each bale slot (e.g., the width/length of each slot) may vary depending on the corresponding size of each bale (e.g., the width/length of each bale) and/or a desired spacing parameter associated with the spacing between adjacent bales within the staging area. For example, an operator may be allowed to input a desired spacing distance to be defined between adjacent bales. In such an embodiment, the size of the bale slots may be selected to accommodate the desired bale spacing within the staging area.
As example view of a staging area that may be generated by the disclosed system controller 212 is illustrated in
As shown in the illustrated example, the staging area 120 is generally defined at a centralized location within the field 100. For instance, in one embodiment, a center 122 of the staging area 120 may, in one embodiment, be located at or adjacent to the geometric center of the field 100. In another embodiment, the location of the center 122 of the staging area 120 may be selected based on the specific locations of the various bales 106 within the field 100, such as by locating the center 122 of the staging area 120 at a location within the field 100 that minimizes the total distance defined between the staging area 120 and the various bales 106. However, as indicated above, the staging area 120 may be located at any other suitable location within or outside the field 100, such as at any suitable operator-selected location.
Additionally, as shown in
Referring back to
For instance, an example set of guidance lines that may be generated by the disclosed system controller 212 is illustrated in
As shown, a plurality of bale collection guidance lines 130 have been defined across the field 100 at offset locations from the various baling paths 102. Specifically, in several embodiments, each bale collection guidance line 130 may be defined at a location between a corresponding pair of adjacent baling paths 102, such as by centering each bale collection guidance line 139 between the corresponding pair of adjacent baling paths 102. For example, as shown in
It should be appreciated that, in other embodiments, the bale collection guidance lines 130 may be defined relative to the various baling paths 102 and/or relative to the various locations of the bales 106 in any other suitable manner that allows for the collection of the bales 106 by the work vehicle 202. For example, in another embodiment, each bale collection guidance line 130 may be aligned with one of the baling paths 102 such that the work vehicle 202 is traversed along the same path as the vehicle/baler 10/12 used to perform the prior baling operation.
Moreover, as shown in
It should be appreciated that, in other embodiments, two or more staging guidance lines 134 may be defined across the field 100. For instance, in one embodiment, a first staging guidance line may be defined across a portion of the field to allow the work vehicle 202 to access the bale collection guidance lines 130 defined along one side of the staging area 120 (e.g., the upper portion or the left portion of the field 100) and a second staging guidance line may be defined across another portion of the field 100 to allow the work vehicle 202 to access the bale collection guidance lines defined along the opposed side of the staging area 120 (e.g., the lower portion or the right portion of the field 100). In such an embodiment, the separate staging lines may, for example, be offset from one another in more directions and may each define any suitable orientation relative to their associated bale collection guidance lines 130.
It should also be appreciated that, although not shown, one or more separate slot guidance lines may also be defined within the staging area 120 for delivering each collected bale 106 to its corresponding bale slot 126 once the work vehicle has entered into the staging area 120 via the staging guidance line(s) 134. In such embodiments, each slot guidance line may, for example, extend from the staging guidance line(s) 134 and intersect one or more bale slots 126. For instance, it may be desirable for each slot guidance line to serve as a common slot guidance line for two or more bale slots 126 to minimize compaction and/or yield losses within the staging area 120.
Referring back to
For instance, referring to the example shown in
Referring back to
As shown in
Additionally, it should be appreciated that, although the system controller 212 has generally been described herein as being provided in operative association with or otherwise forming part of the illustrated work vehicle 202, the controller 212 may, instead, correspond to a separate controller or computing device. For instance, in one embodiment, the controller 212 may correspond to a computing device separate from the work vehicle 202 that is configured to perform one or more of the various functions described herein, such as by determining the location and/or arrangement of the staging area and/or by generating the various guidance lines across which the work vehicle 202 is to be traversed when collecting the bales and subsequently delivering the bales to the staging area. In such an embodiment, the planning data or other data generated by the controller 212 when performing such functions may then be transmitted to a corresponding controller of the work vehicle 202 to allow the bale collection operation to be performed by the vehicle 202.
Referring now to
As shown in
Additionally, at (304), the method 300 may include determining a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the bales deposited within the field. For example, as indicated above, the controller 212 may, in one embodiment, be configured to automatically select a location for the staging area 120, such as by selecting a centralized location within the field 100 to serve as the staging area 120 (e.g., as determined based on the locations of the bales 106 and/or the size/shape of the field 100). Alternatively, the controller 212 may be configured to set the location of the staging area 120 based on inputs received from the operator and/or based on other pre-defined user preferences.
Moreover, at (306), the method 300 may include generating a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed when collecting the bales and delivering the plurality of bales to the staging area. For example, as indicated above, the controller 212 may be configured to generate suitable guidance lines that optimize the efficiency of performing the bale collection operation while taking into account considerations of field compaction and/or yield losses. Specifically, in several embodiments, the guidance lines generated by the controller 212 may include one or more bale collection guidance lines 130 defined relative to the baling paths 102 and one or more staging guidance lines 134 connecting the bale collection guidance lines 130 to the staging area 120. For example, as indicated above, each bale collection guidance line 130 may, in one embodiment, be defined between a corresponding pair of adjacent baling paths 102, with a common staging guidance line 134 connecting the various bale collection guidance lines 130 to the staging area 120.
Referring still to
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.
Claims
1. A method for performing a bale collection operation, the method comprising:
- accessing, with a computing device, data associated with a plurality of baling paths traversed across a field during the performance of a baling operation, each baling path being associated with at least one bale of a plurality of bales to be collected within the field;
- determining, with the computing device, a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the plurality of bales;
- generating, with the computing device, a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed when collecting the plurality of bales and delivering the plurality of bales to the staging area, the plurality of guidance lines including at least one bale collection guidance line defined relative to at least one of the baling paths and at least one staging guidance line extending between the at least one bale collection guidance line and the staging area; and
- guiding, with the computing device, a work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the plurality of bales within the field and deliver the plurality of bales to the staging area.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein accessing data associated with the plurality of baling paths comprises accessing data associated with at least one of a location of each of the plurality of bales within the field or a vehicle heading when each of the plurality of bales was deposited within the field during the baling operation.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the location of the staging area comprises automatically determining the location of the staging area based on at least one of a location of each of the plurality of bales within the field or data associated with at least one of a size or shape of the field.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the location of the staging area comprises determining a centralized location within the field to be used as the location of the staging area.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the location of the staging area comprises receiving an operator input associated with a selection of the location of the staging area relative to the field.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bale collection guidance line comprises a plurality of bale collection guidance lines, wherein generating the plurality of guidance lines comprises generating the plurality of bale collection guidance lines such that the plurality of bale collection guidance lines are offset from the plurality of baling paths.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein generating the plurality of bale collection guidance lines comprises generating the plurality of bale collection guidance lines such that each bale collection guide line is positioned between a corresponding pair of adjacent baling paths.
8. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one staging guidance line comprises a common staging guidance line extending between the staging area and each of the plurality of bale collection guidance lines.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating a staging grid for placement of the plurality of bales within the staging area.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the staging grid is generated based, at least in part, on at least one of a number of the plurality of bales, a bale type of the plurality of bales, or a bale size of the plurality of bales.
11. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining a location for each of the plurality of bales within the staging grid based, at least in part, on a position of each bale relative to the staging grid.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein guiding the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines comprises automatically controlling an operation of the work vehicle such that the work vehicle is traversed along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the plurality of bales within the field and deliver the plurality of bales to the staging area.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein guiding the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines comprises displaying the plurality of guidance lines on a display device of the work vehicle to allow an operator of the work vehicle to navigate the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the plurality of bales within the field and deliver the plurality of bales to the staging.
14. A system for performing a bale collection operation, the system comprising:
- a work vehicle configured to collect a plurality of bales located within a field;
- a controller provided in operative association with the work vehicle, the controller including a processor and associated memory, the memory storing instructions that, when implemented by the processor, configure the controller to: access data associated with a plurality of baling paths traversed across the field during the performance of a baling operation, each baling path being associated with at least one bale of the plurality of bales; determine a location of a staging area relative to the field for aggregating the plurality of bales; generate a plurality of guidance lines to be traversed by the work vehicle when collecting the plurality of bales and delivering the plurality of bales to the staging area, the plurality of guidance lines including at least one bale collection guidance line defined relative to at least one of the baling paths and at least one staging guidance line extending between the at least one bale collection guidance line and the staging area; and guide the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines to collect the plurality of bales within the field and deliver the plurality of bales to the staging area.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the data associated with the plurality of baling paths comprises at least one of data associated with a location of each of the plurality of bales within the field or a data associated with a vehicle heading when each of the plurality of bales was deposited within the field during the baling operation.
16. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to determine the location of the staging area based on at least one of a location of each of the plurality of bales within the field, data associated with at least one of a size or shape of the field, or an operator input associated with a selection of the location of the staging area relative to the field.
17. The system of claim 14, wherein the at least one bale collection guidance line comprises a plurality of bale collection guidance lines, wherein the controller is configured to generate the plurality of bale collection guidance lines such that each bale collection guide line is positioned between a corresponding pair of adjacent baling paths.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one staging guidance line comprises a common staging guidance line extending between the staging area and each of the plurality of bale collection guidance lines.
19. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to generate a staging grid for placement of the plurality of bales within the staging area.
20. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to guide the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines by automatically controlling an operation of the work vehicle such that the work vehicle is traversed along the plurality of guidance lines or by displaying the plurality of guidance lines on a display device of the work vehicle to allow an operator of the work vehicle to navigate the work vehicle along the plurality of guidance lines.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 21, 2018
Publication Date: Sep 26, 2019
Applicant:
Inventor: Ivan Antich (Willowbrook, IL)
Application Number: 15/927,195